TAKEOVER ACTIVITIES IN THE LAST EUROPEAN MERGER WAVE: A CROSS-COUNTRY COMPARISON

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Abstract

The efficiency of “markets vs corporations” in reallocating assets, changing industry structure and moving capital from declining industries to emerging industries is a very important issue. The vast literature on this subject has examined the role played by corporate governance systems, technological shocks and institutional factors in triggering mergers and takeovers, but has not considered the specific influence that technological regimes of innovation can exert in reallocating assets and moving capital among sectors. In the present work we attempt to fill this gap, evaluating on empirical grounds not only the role of corporate governance systems and investor protection factors, but also the influence that alternative technological regimes can play on mergers and takeovers. This comprehensive analysis is another step along the lines suggested by Hall and Soskice (2001), two authors who have shown that the industrial specialization of each country may be seen in its complementarity with its institutional framework. Until now, this complementarity between production regimes and varieties of capitalism has not been fully explored in terms of the role of the market for corporate control. The present paper is a first attempt at filling this gap, by taking into account the European experience of the last few years (2002-2005) which seems to mark a new wave in M&A activities.

Keywords: Corporate Governance, Mergers And Acquisitions, Innovation, Technological Regimes

How to cite this paper: Damiani, M., & Pompei, F. (2009). Takeover activities in the last European merger wave: A cross-country comparison. Corporate Ownership & Control, 6(3), 8-25. https://doi.org/10.22495/cocv6i3p1